Working with Suicidal Clients: EFT Tools for Assessment & Intervention

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP

This training will equip clinicians to identify high-risk factors for suicidality and thoughtfully integrate them into client assessments. Using an attachment-informed lens grounded in Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), we will explore how both the client’s and therapist’s attachment styles influence the assessment and intervention process.

Through experiential exercises, participants will gain greater self-awareness of their own attachment patterns and emotional responses when working with suicidal clients. The training will then shift to practical, clinically grounded strategies for suicide risk assessment, treatment planning, and intervention—emphasizing clear legal and ethical responsibilities.

By the end of the training, participants will feel more confident, grounded, and ethically prepared to conduct effective, attachment-informed suicide assessments in their clinical practice.

CEUs

Certificate of Attendance: 3 hours

KEY LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Understand the Risk Factors and Resources for Suicidal ClientsParticipants will identify key risk and protective factors associated with suicidality and explore how these elements inform a comprehensive clinical assessment. This includes integrating foundational theories such as the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide, as well as current empirical research, to enhance clinical insight and guide decision-making when evaluating suicide risk.
• Assess the Client’s and Therapist’s Attachment Style in Suicide Risk EvaluationParticipants will utilize evidence-based strategies to assess how attachment-related vulnerabilities contribute to suicidal thoughts and behaviors. This objective includes recognizing how insecure attachment can lead to emotional dysregulation, hopelessness, and interpersonal disconnection—factors that increase suicide risk. Clinicians will also reflect on their own attachment styles and examine how their emotional responses, countertransference, and attachment-based biases can influence the assessment process and therapeutic relationship.
• Implement EFT-Informed Interventions for Suicidal ClientsParticipants will apply Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) principles to support emotional regulation, foster secure connection, and create a sense of relational safety for clients experiencing suicidality. Interventions will be grounded in an attachment framework that attends to unmet emotional needs, while also de-escalating distress through attuned therapeutic presence.
• Review Legal and Ethical Responsibilities in Suicide Assessment and TreatmentParticipants will gain clarity on their legal and ethical obligations when assessing and treating suicidal clients. This includes understanding standards for documentation, informed consent, duty to protect, and appropriate referral or hospitalization procedures. Attention will also be given to how to navigate clinical records in the event of a subpoena, ensuring documentation is clear, clinically sound, and ethically defensible.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Rachel Thomas, LMFT has been practicing as a therapist since 1997 and is a Certified Emotionally Focused Therapist, Supervisor, and the Arizona EFT Trainer. Over the years, she’s remained passionate about helping people strengthen their most important relationships, whether that’s with a partner, within a family, or with themselves. In addition to seeing clients, Rachel leads Hold Me Tight® workshops and offers two-day EFT intensives for couples and adult families looking for a deeper, more focused therapy experience. Rachel has been an AAMFT Approved Supervisor since 2005 and has supported many therapists on their path to licensure and beyond. These days, her primary focus is on supervision, mentorship, and training. She provides ongoing consultation to her team at Therapy With Heart as well as EFT clinicians around the country and internationally. She has also played a consistent role in the Arizona EFT and MFT communities, including serving as President of AzEFT for four years. Now, in her role as Arizona’s EFT Trainer, she continues to support therapists in growing their confidence, deepening their clinical work, and staying connected to the heart of the model.

DISCOUNTS

** 20% discount offered to group practices of 5 or more who each register for the event; email us for the discount code

CANCELLATION/REFUND POLICY

In the event that you have paid for an upcoming event but are not able to attend, you may request a refund up to 30 days prior to the event.

Refund requests must be received in writing via email to: azeftcommunity@gmail.com. Requests received at least 60 days prior to the start of the event will receive a full refund of the registration minus the Eventbrite refund fee. Requests received between 30-59 days prior to the start of the event will receive a 50% refund of the registration minute the Eventbrite refund fee. No refunds will be issued for cancellations received less than 30 days prior to the start of the event.